THE SHORT COFFEE BREAK IN JAKARTA

   24TH FEBRUARY 2025    ~ We decided to take a coffee break after checking in at the hotel and before doing some shopping at Thamrin City Mall. The cafe, @Tomoro, was located at the entrance of the mall.

My friend sat outside so he could smoke but I opted to stay in the confined air-conditioned space,

Once coffee and croissant were finished, I was so ready to be on my feet again, to hunt for batik shirts to bring back home.

[MY JAKARTA/BANDUNG TRIP 2025 MAIN PAGE]

SPOT THE ERROR 207

A common misconception among learners of English as a second/foreign language:

plural nouns versus apostrophe "s" to show possession.

TIP's vs. TIPS

READ HERE to find out how I came across this error.

HOTEL REVIEW: THE JERAI HOTEL, ALOR SETAR

After the symposium at Grand Alora Hotel [READ HERE], I decided to move to another hotel in the heart of Alor Setar city, the Jerai Hotel for one night on 22nd April 2025 . A friend actually recommended me this place.

This was an old hotel but everything was clean and well taken care of.

The room was not spacious though, and this should not be an issue for a solo traveller like me.

The views from my room window.

My booking came together with breakfast, It was decent enough but most importantly, everything was tasty.

The best feature of this hotel was its strategic location. Pekan Rabu where people go to shop was just behind the building. Other attractions like the Mosque, the Royal Museum and Art Gallery were just within walking distance. I would consider returning to this place again if I were to go back to Alor Setar one day.

THE COFFEE/TEA DATE WITH A POLICEMAN

Mr. Radin Mohd. Hafiz was in town for the short break to celebrate Eid ul-Adha with his family here. An ex-student of SMK Taman Universiti, he is now attached to the the Malaysia Royal Police in Ipoh, Perak.

He texted me last night, asking me to join him and his friend for dinner, but I couldn't make it as it was at the last minute and I was ready for bed at that time. 😀 However, knowing that putting off any coffee/tea date would end up with no tea/coffee date at all, we decided to meet this afternoon at Taman Universiti.

The chosen venue: Old Town White Coffee Restaurant. I particularly like this place as there are always not many people around, and I love the Teh Tarik here. As we wanted to get something light, we ordered Sardine Roti Canai a.k.a Paratha and it was surprisingly delicious.

The chat session lasted for about an hour and hopefully we could see each other again, even though it is impossible to do it frequently. The last time I saw him was two years ago during my short trip to Ipoh [READ HERE].

SPOT THE ERROR 206

Found in the menu of a hotel in Alor Setar.

ERROR #1

Spelling of APPETIZER, instead of APPERTIZER

ERROR #2

MAIN DISHED?

This could be a typo error, should be MAIN DISHES

ERROR #3

FRIED MEE HOON SINGAPORE

transposed of adjective, which should be:
SINGAPORE FRIED MEE HOON

ERROR #4

2X TYPE'S PUDDING

the wrong usage of apostrophe, which should appear as:

2 TYPES OF PUDDING

ERROR #5

The wrong spelling of BAVERAGE

should be spelled as: BEVERAGE

 

ATTENDING A 2-DAY NATIONAL LEVEL SYMPOSIUM IN ALOR SETAR

   DAY 1   

   21ST APRIL 2025    ~ I was back in Alor Setar, this time to attend a National Level Symposium for Pasukan Pelindung Kanak-Kanak [TRANSLATE: Children's Protectors Team] under Jabatan Kebajikan Masyarakat [TRANSLATE: Welfare Department]. I was with the Johor contingent but decided to take a flight to Penang, instead of joining the bus trip from Johor Bahru.

The venue chosen was Grand Alora Hotel in Alor Setar, Kedah. Delegates came from all over the country to attend the sessions.

We were still in the month of Syawal and Eid was still celebrated. Hence, participants were asked to come in with their Eid attires for the opening ceremony.

8

I  was the earliest to be there and had to wait for other Johor delegates who came with the bus. According to the schedule, the symposium should start at 2:30 p.m.

Unfortunately, there were not many people, even from the Johor group, that I knew so I did not have friends to talk to throughout the session.

There was this television celebrity, whom I did not know but looked very familiar, who went from one table to another for meet-the-fans session.

   DAY 2   

On day 2, the sitting position had already been changed. The morning sessions started at 9:00 a.m. after breakfast.

There were more talks and a forum to conclude the whole thing.

By 1:00 p.m., the symposium ended and the participants rushed to get their lunch before heading home. As for me, I extended my stay in Alor Setar for one more day.

I was happy to get to attend the symposium. However, I personally feel that the Welfare Department should consider organizing the event at least for 3D2N kind of affair. People had to travel long distance to get to the venue and yet they stayed there only for about 24 hours and went home. The participants from faraway places spent more time on the bus [or other mode of transportation] than sitting in the hall, listening to presentations. The same thing happen with the seminar attended in Penang last year. [READ HERE]

It was still a fruitful session for me as I learned new things and acquired new knowledge.